Retractably tethered hockey puck and sports balls

ABSTRACT

A hockey puck and sports ball training device for practicing puck or ball control, dribbling, shooting, passing and pass receiving is disclosed. The hockey puck or the sports ball uses a spring powered retracting mechanism which provides a retracting force on the tether and to automatically return the puck or ball to location of the retracting mechanism. In another embodiment of this invention, the retracting mechanism is built inside the hockey puck and the puck is attached to the hockey stick by a tethering device. The tethering device and puck can be easily attached or removed from the hockey stick. This invention is intended to improve players&#39; stick handling, shooting, passing and pass receiving skills. Also to strengthening arm and writs of players&#39; shots and passes.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to retractably tethered hockey puck and other sports balls for practice hitting, throwing shooting, dribbling, passing or receiving a pass. The tethering mechanism can either be inside the puck or the ball, or can be attached to fixtures outside the puck or the ball.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART

Balls are used in a variety of sports, such as basketball, volleyball, baseball, softball, lacrosse, ball hockey, rollerblade hockey and ice hockey. In all these sports, players wish to improve their handling of the ball by practicing throwing the ball, as in basketball and baseball, or hitting the ball as in volleyball. In some other sports, such as hockey, a stick is used to shoot a puck. Hockey players spend many hours practicing handling and shooting a puck, and to improve their skills and power shooting the puck.

In all these sports, it is desired to have a tethered puck or ball so that the player does not have to retrieve them after they are hit, shot or passed the loose puck or ball; therefore, the time in chasing the loose puck or ball is prevented. In addition, players practice passing a puck or a ball between each other to improve their passing and handling skills. This practice is difficult to do alone and it requires at least two players or the use of some kind of aid. One method to help players practice their skills and improve their power and strength is by using a tethered puck or ball.

The prior art provides numerous ways to tether a puck. Many of the tethered pucks use elastic cords, which returns the puck after certain stretch distance. For instance, U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,863,917, 4,111,419, 5,120,055 and 5,816,945 disclose a practice hockey puck removably coupled to an elastic cord which includes a fastening device at the opposite end for fastening to a hockey stick. These types of elastic cords have long unstretched lengths and slack that lay on the ground and may disturbance the player.

Another type of tethered puck is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,023,797 issued to Sarrasin, discloses a tethering line attached to a hockey puck and wound on the spool of a reel assembly mounted on a hockey stick. The hockey puck can only travel length of line on the spool of the reel assembly. In order to pull the puck back, a crank, which is affixed to the spool on the stick is manually turned to rewound the line onto the spool. The process of rewinding the line is time consuming and tedious. This device is good for a single shot at a time.

Other practice hockey puck relate to the method of connecting the puck to the hockey stick. For instance, U.S. Pat. No. 6,716,120 issued to Normand discloses a hockey blade having a shank for inserting a stick handle and contains a channel along the lower edge of the blade. A string is fastened at one end to a puck and the other end to a ball shaped bead which can move freely within the channel.

The above disadvantages can be overcome by the present invention, by having an inbuilt spring assembly inside the hockey puck. With this system, the puck quickly retuned to the player after it is hit. The distance it travels and its time of return can be controlled and adjusted by the type of spring used in the mechanism.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

One object of the present invention is a hockey training device comprising a hockey stick with a blade tethered to a hockey puck having an inbuilt spring system. This type of puck can be used in ice hockey, rollerblade hockey and ball hockey.

Another object of present invention is to have a puck that allows a hockey player to practice puck control and shooting without the help of a partner; and also, to train a player to shoot with more accuracy and power (strength).

Another object of present invention is to save the hockey players training time by not having to retrieve loose pucks or use multiple number of pucks.

Another object of the present invention is to have a device that can help players build strength. Having a strong spring mechanism attached to a puck makes it harder for players to shoot the puck, thus increasing their power and strength with repeated use of this invention.

The other object of present invention is to train players to keep their stick on the ice, as the puck returns to the stick almost instantly after the shot. This is extremely good practice for receiving passes due to the almost instant retraction of the puck to the stick. Therefore, this invention allows shooting and receiving practice at the same time.

The other object of the present invention is to train players to develop proper follow through straight line stick to target.

The other object of the present invention is to have spring loaded tethered balls for a variety of sports, such as baseball, basketball, volleyball, lacrosse, and softball.

Another object of the present invention is to make practicing all sports using this invention much more enjoyable for both children and adults.

Another object of the present invention is to enable children to practice on their own without pressure from their peers, parents or coaches. Practicing on their own means there will be no embarrassment if performance does not meet expectations. As we all know there is much pressure put on children and youths to perform well in sports this day and age.

Another object of the present invention is to allow younger children to play with a ball with limited adult supervision. Standard tethered balls are not safe for young children since the tether may be rapped around their body. With the present invention, there is never a loose tether and the rate of tether retraction can be controlled by choosing a proper spring so that there is no potential harm to a child.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates a retractably tethered hockey puck and hockey stick.

FIG. 2 illustrates the top view of a hockey puck with its top cover removed.

FIG. 3 illustrates a side cross sectional view of the hockey puck with its internal mechanism.

FIG. 4 illustrates a hockey stick with a string receiving aperture.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

The present invention relates to retractable hockey pucks and sports balls, such as basketball, volleyball, baseball, softball, and lacrosse. A detailed description of the mechanism is provided for a hockey puck. However, the same description will apply to any other sports ball.

One embodiment of the present invention is comprised of a hockey puck tethered to a hockey stick, wherein the hockey puck has an inbuilt spring mechanism to retract the puck back to the stick after a pass or shot. In addition, the blade of the hockey stick has multiplicity of apertures, at least one aperture being close to the heel of the blade; a tethering means, such as a fishing line, which its first end is connected to the blade through one of the apertures and its second end is attached to the spool inside the puck.

Referring now to the drawings, FIG. 1 illustrates a hockey stick 1 with a handle 2, a blade 3, a hockey puck 10, and string 20. The hockey puck 10 is connected to the blade 3 by means of the string 20 through an aperture 4.

FIGS. 2 and 3 illustrate top and side views a hockey puck 10 which comprises of an outer casing 12, which is made of material used in conventional pucks, namely vulcanized rubber or plastic. The puck has an inner empty space, a cavity 14 to receive a retractable string mechanism 16. The outer casing 12 also has an aperture 18 through which a string 20 can be extended and retracted.

The string 20 winds around a spool 22, which is located inside the puck cavity 14. The string has a terminal end 24 which is connected to the spool 22. The spool 22 rotates about an axis “AA” thereby permitting the cable 20 to be retracted into a compact coil configuration within the puck 12. The spool 22 has a hollow central part 30 that is concentric with axis “AA” and that enables the spool 22 to be mounted for rotation about a cylindrical flange 32 extending inwardly from a wall of the casing 12.

A spring 34, preferably a constant force spring that has a memorized wound shape, is located within the hollow central part 30 and provides a retracting force that automatically rewinds the string 20 back onto the spool 22 when the puck is shot and extends to its maximum distance. A casing cover 36 provides containment for the retraction mechanism and it is fastened to the casing with a fastener 38 which may be a screw, rivet, or other selected fasteners.

In another embodiment of the present invention, the retraction mechanism 14 has a damping mechanism that is operatively connected to the spool to damp the rotary motion of the spool when the cable is retracted by the force of the spring. The damping mechanism controls the speed of the rotation of the spool, and therefore, the speed of the retraction of the puck can be controlled.

The retraction process of the tethered puck is as follows: Once the puck is hit by a hockey stick, it travels a certain distance. The distance it travels depends on the initial force applied by the player on the puck. The harder the player hits the puck the farther it travels. The maximum distance is restricted to the string length and/or the spring length. As the puck moves away from the stick, the string 20 is unwound from the spool 22 and simultaneously the spring 34 is caused to be wound onto the inner cavity of the spool 30. Therefore, as the spring is unwound from spool, the spring is wound in an opposite direction onto the hub. When the puck is at full extension or the force stored in the spring reaches to a level that the puck is stopped, the spring 34 winds into its normal, memorized wound position. This causes the spring to be simultaneously wound onto the spool to a final fully retracted position.

FIG. 4 illustrates another embodiment of the present invention for connecting the string 20 to the blade 3 of the hockey stick. Blade 3 having a heal 41, a toe 42 and an aperture 4. Aperture 4 is preferably located close to the heel of the blade. This will allow the player to easily move the stick over the puck during stick handling practice. One end of the string end 44 is connected to the blade 3 by passing it through the apertures 4. Various connecting means can be used to connect the string to the stick, such as rings, hooks, small posts and rods, longitudinal or circular block, which cannot pass through the apertures can be connected to the end of the string.

In another embodiment of the same invention, the retraction mechanism is attached to the hockey stick and only the string extending out of the mechanism is attached to the hockey puck. One attachment point is illustrated in FIG. 5, which illustrates a retractable string mechanism 50 attached to one side of a hockey blade 51. String 52 extends out of the mechanism and passes through an aperture 53 located on the blade 51. One end of the string is attached a puck 54. The retraction mechanism can be attached to various locations on the handle as well.

FIG. 6 illustrates another embodiment of the same invention used to practice volleyball. The invention comprises of a volleyball 70 tethered to a spring loaded retraction mechanism 71. This retractably tethered volleyball is used for practicing hitting the ball and also practicing spikes. The retractable mechanism 71 can be fixed on a horizontally extended pole 72, or to the ceiling of the playground. The height of the pole 73 is adjusted to position the ball at a desired height 74 for the player for practicing spikes. The play can spike the ball, which will extend a maximum distance 75 dictated by the string and the spring lengths; the ball is then returned to its original place 70 for the next hit. The player can continuously practice hits and spikes without chasing after the ball. The position of the pole can be adjusted both vertically 73 and horizontally 76.

Another embodiment of the same invention is used to practice basketball. With the present retractably tethered basketball a player can practice passing the ball to another player, and also practice receiving the ball from another player. In one embodiment, as illustrated in FIG. 7, the spring loaded retractable mechanism 80 is put on the hand 81 of the player and the string extending out of the mechanism is attached to the basketball 82. The mechanism can be attached to the wrist 83 of the player as a wrist band 84. The string extending out of the mechanism is guided through a flexible guide 85 to player's FIGS. 86. The string is the attached to the ball. When the player passes the ball, the string extends to a maximum distance and then returns. A player can practice passing the ball, dribbling the ball and even receiving ball over and over again. FIG. 8 illustrates the retracting mechanism 90 that is located on the hand of the player and two support rings 91 and 92 that enter into player's fingers to tether the ball.

Another embodiment of the same invention is used in baseball, softball or similar sports. For instance, in baseball, as illustrated in FIG. 9, a baseball ball 100 is thrown with one hand it is received with another hand. For this purpose, the spring loaded tethering mechanisms 101 fixed at one location, for instance to the ground 102. The player stretches 103 the ball to his/her standing location 104 and throws the ball. The ball will extend to its maximum distance 105 and will return to where the location that the ball is tethered 102. One end of the tethered string has an elastic member 103 which can be elastically stretched, therefore, allowing for the player to extend the string beyond the length of the unwind string.

While a preferred training hockey puck is described, various modifications, alterations, and changes may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the retracting hockey puck according to the present invention as defined in the appended claims. Many other configurations of the described retractor mechanisms may be useable by one skilled in the art, and those skilled in the art can readily select other known retractor mechanism that fit within a puck or a ball. 

1- A hockey puck having an inbuilt retractable string mechanism, said puck comprising: an outer casing having the same dimensions as a conventional hockey puck; said casing having an open inner cavity; and a retractable mechanism fit inside said casing cavity. 2- The hockey puck of claim 1, wherein said retractable mechanism comprising: a. a spool having an outer hub and an inner hub; b. a string which is windable on the outer hub of said spool and it extends out of said puck casing through an aperture on the casing; c. said string having its first end connected to the spool, and its second end connected to a fixture outside of the puck; and d. a spring which is located in the inner hub of the spool; whereby, the spring becomes loaded as the string is pulled out of the puck and unwinds from the spool, thereby storing retracting energy, and will retract the string once the puck stops. 3- A hockey puck of claim 2 wherein said fixture outside of the puck is a hockey stick, whereby the string is connected to a hockey stick for practice. 4- A hockey training device comprising: a. a hockey stick having a handle and a blade; b. a hockey puck tethered to the hockey stick; c. said puck having a retractable spring means built inside the puck; d. a string having two ends; e. one end of said string having means to connect to the hockey stick and the other end of the string having means connect to the spring mechanism inside the puck; whereby the puck returns towards the stick after it is hit. 5- (canceled) 6- A hockey practice device comprising: a. a puck and a hockey stick; b. a spring powered retractable mechanism; c. a string or cable having one end connected to the retractable mechanism and the other end attached to the puck or the ball; d. said retractable mechanism fixed at a location other than on the puck or the hockey stick, whereby, said puck is automatically retracted to its original position after it is hit by the hockey stick due to the action of the spring inside the mechanism. 7- A hockey puck or a sports ball practice device of 6, wherein said spring means comprising of a positive gradient spring, whereby the incremental force on the spring increases as the string unwinds. 8- A hockey puck or a sports ball practice device of 6, wherein said spring means comprising of a constant force spring, whereby the force on the spring remains constant as the string unwinds. 9- A hockey puck or a sports ball practice device of 6, wherein said spring means comprising of a negative gradient spring, whereby the incremental force on the spring decreases as the string unwinds. 10- (canceled) 11- (canceled) 